THE NUMBERS BEHIND THE STORIES
Data can help identify patterns.
Research consistently shows poorer outcomes for many neurodivergent people across
education, healthcare, social care, employment, justice and other public systems.
What remains unmeasured is whether misunderstanding, exclusion or discrimination
contribute to these disproportionate outcomes.
EMPLOYMENT
34%
of autistic adults are in employment.
National
employment rate:
82%
Source
House of Commons
Library (2025)
SOCIAL CARE
59.5%
of children in long-term care have identified SEND.
National average: 18.1%
Source
Department for Education
JUSTICE
25%
of people in prison are estimated to
have ADHD. In the general
population it's
3–5%.
Source
UK prison prevalence research
HEALTHCARE
23%
of children with ADHD had to wait for over four years before receiving
their diagnosis.
Source
2024 Children's Commissioner
EDUCATION
4 1/2 times
Pupils with identified SEND are 4½ times more likely to be suspended than the other children.
Source
House of Commons
Library (2025)
LOCAL AUTHORITIES
96%
of SEND tribunal decisions are found wholly or partly in favour of parents
and young people.
Source
Ministry of Justice
LOOKING BEYOND THE NUMBERS
Statistics show us an outcome but they don't explain the "Why?"
The following sections explore what the research tells us, what it doesn't tell us, and highlights important evidence that's missing.
EMPLOYMENT
Research shows
Autistic adults experience
significantly poorer employment outcomes than the wider population.
What's not measured
If recruitment practices, expectations, misunderstanding or systemic barriers contribute to these outcomes.
What's not questioned
To what extent do recruitment
practices and workplace systems contribute to these outcomes?
SOCIAL CARE
Research shows
Children with identified SEND
are disproportionately represented within the care system.
What's not measured
Are unmet needs, inadequate support or systemic failures contribute to children entering or remaining in care.
What's not questioned
To what extent do misunderstanding, delayed support or discrimination contribute to these outcomes?
JUSTICE
Research shows
People with ADHD are consistently disproportionately represented within
the justice system
What's not measured
How missed identification, exclusion, inadequate support or systemic barriers contribute to justice involvement.
What's not questioned
The impact of systemic failure on peoples mental health and the exacerbation of
ADHD traits that it causes.
HEALTHCARE
Research shows
Many children experience prolonged waits before receiving assessment or diagnosis.
What's not measured
The educational, emotional and family impact of delayed identification and delayed support.
What's not questioned
What is the long-term impact
of waiting years for
assessment and support?
EDUCATION
Research shows
Pupils with identified SEND
experience significantly higher rates
of suspension than their peers.
What's not measured
Whether behaviour policies, unmet needs or lack of appropriate support contribute to those suspensions.
What's not questioned
To what extent do school systems
and practices contribute to
disproportionate educational outcomes?
LOCAL AUTHORITIES
Research shows
Most SEND tribunal decisions are found wholly or partly in favour of parents and young people.
What's not measured
How many families cannot appeal, abandon appeals or accept decisions they believe are wrong.
What's not questioned
Why's it not investigated that so many Local Authority decisions later overturned through the tribunal process?
The key question remains unanswered:
If legal protections exist, why do people so commonly and consistently fail to experience those protections in practice?
The absence of evidence should not be mistaken for the absence of a problem.
Sometimes it simply reflects the fact that the question has not yet been asked.
BRIDGING THE EVIDENCE GAP
Requires thinking differently:
FOR EVERY NEUROTYPE
Looking beyond individual diagnoses
to recognise neurodivergence as a connected community with shared experiences, overlapping traits and common barriers. Together, this
broader perspective helps reveal the systemic issues that unite them.
WHERE EVERY VOICE COUNTS
Anonymous submissions allow students, parents, professionals, employees, allies and the wider community to share honest lived experiences without fear of judgement or consequence. Every perspective helps build a fuller understanding of SENDism.
EVERY EXPERIENCE IS EVIDENCE
By collecting lived experiences from the neurodivergent community in one place, patterns begin to emerge that individual stories and condition-specific research cannot easily reveal alone, providing the evidence needed to better understand and challenge SENDism across society
Individual stories raise awareness, but when viewed as a collective from an entire community, these experiences reveal systemic patterns.